The ruins of the Fishman District still radiated the scorching remnant heat of the Vermilion Bird's divine fire.
Hody Jones and his core fanatics had been reduced to ash, scattered across the dark streets they once prided themselves on by the deep sea's gentle current.
Several thousand surviving fishman thugs remained kneeling. Some despaired because their faith had shattered. Others trembled, still paralyzed by the godlike annihilation they had just witnessed.
Shark stepped forward. The dark silver Samehada strapped to his back, his heavy footfalls echoing over the cobblestone.
He stopped before the kneeling crowd.
"Lift your heads."
Shark's voice was low, but it struck every eardrum like a hammer blow.
"You all claimed to fight for the pride of the fishman race. And yet for six years, you let a monster who murdered his own queen lead you around like puppets."
"Look at yourselves! Hiding in the sewers of the deep, no purpose, no backbone!"
Shark's gaze sliced through each of them like a blade.
"Boss Tiger gave his life to brand us with the sun. That mark was meant for us to rise against true oppressors, to tear down the powers that actually crush us. Not for this. Not to butcher each other and turn into mindless husks!"
A fishman with a pointed horn looked up, face streaked with tears and confusion. "Brother Shark… what do we do? We have nowhere left to go."
"Nowhere?"
Shark turned and pointed at the man standing behind him in the dark red coat, Ace.
"You see that man? That's Portgas D. Ace, captain of the Eclipse Pirates. The man who killed Celestial Dragons, the man who fought a Marine Admiral head-on and walked away."
"He just gave you a second chance."
Shark's voice climbed another octave. "Now I'm giving you a choice!"
"Keep rotting in this cesspool, waiting for the Marines or some other pirate crew to crush you like insects."
"Or join us! Become a force under the Eclipse Pirates! Use your fists and your fire to overturn this damn world aboard that ship! We don't sail for some empty peace. We sail to rip apart this stinking old order the Celestial Dragons built. You want to fight real oppressors? Then use your strength to declare war on the world. Don't stand here pointing blades at innocent civilians."
At those words, a stir rippled through the dead Fishman District.
"Join the man who killed a Celestial Dragon?"
"You think a monster like that can really bring down the World Government?"
"I'm in!"
The pointed-horn fishman was the first to rise. He wiped his tears, fist clenched tight. "Captain Ace spared my life. So I'll sell it to him. I want to fight on the open sea like Boss Tiger did, not hide down here like a coward!"
"Me too!"
"Count me in!"
"Brother Shark, take us with you!"
Shark's soul-shaking roar and the terrifying display of Ace's power had worked. These thugs, who carried a certain ferocity in their bones and craved strength like nothing else, had found a new faith.
Within minutes, thousands of fishmen rose to their feet, eyes blazing with fevered devotion to that hellish ship.
"Captain Ace… would you really take in scum like us, with our hands all covered in filth?" a thin swordfish fishman asked, voice trembling.
"I don't take in useless trash."
Ace looked over the crowd. "But if you want to get stronger, to live with your heads high, and you're willing to sweat for it, then you're not trash. Down here in the deep sea, I need an army that can wage war for me."
"Shark, these are your men. You screen them. Find the ones with the right spirit and some foundation. Make them squad leaders. Break them up, reorganize them, and build a fishman legion that belongs solely to the Eclipse Pirates."
Ace continued, "They'll stay in the Fishman District for now, gradually absorbing the rest of the thugs. You'll plan their training. Teach them how to fight, how to coordinate, how to drill, how to follow the Eclipse's rules. When they can handle the storms of the New World, that's when we put them to use."
"Understood, Captain."
Shark turned to the fishman leaders who had stepped forward, his eyes hardening.
"Carina." Ace tilted his head.
"Right here, Captain!"
Carina kicked off the ground with a Moonwalk, landing lightly among the fishmen. She looked over the thousands of rough, dangerous faces and gave a satisfied snap of her fingers.
"All the squad leaders Shark picks, line up and let me touch you. From now on, you're part of the Eclipse Pirates' outer forces."
One by one, Carina's slender fingers tapped the foreheads of the fishman leaders.
The power of the Link Link Fruit activated silently.
"Done."
Carina dusted off her hands, having just created an entirely new communication frequency inside her mind.
"Captain, Shark. I've planted a contract imprint in them. I opened a dedicated Fishman Legion command channel. You're both in it too. From now on, any movement these guys make in the deep sea, or any remote training orders Shark needs to send, just think it and it's handled."
"Whoa! Someone's talking in my head!"
"It's her! This is insane!"
"What… what kind of demon power is this?!"
The fishman leaders who had just been marked were stunned to find a perfectly clear voice channel living inside their minds. They could even sense Shark and Ace's presence on the other end. This utterly unreasonable communication method deepened their awe of the black ship by another layer.
Once everything was arranged, Carina sidled up to Ace and lowered her voice. "So, captain. Are we just openly poaching Whitebeard's men right under King Neptune's and Boss Jinbe's noses?"
"Poaching?"
Ace laughed.
"Carina, you don't understand what the Fishman District is. It's a lawless garbage dump no one controls. Not even Ryugu Palace has any authority here. You think these thugs ever considered themselves under Whitebeard's protection? This is unclaimed territory. What's the problem if I claim it?"
Ace glanced at the Whitebeard Pirate flag fluttering in the distance.
"Besides, even if it were poaching, so what?"
He didn't bother lowering his voice. Neptune and Jinbe, standing nearby, heard every word clearly.
"Back on Sabaody, we already crushed Kaido's men and Big Mom's men. We've already made enemies of two of the Four Emperors. Adding another to the list doesn't bother me. If Whitebeard has a problem with me taking his supposed 'little brothers,' he's welcome to sail the Moby Dick over and find me."
Hearing such reckless arrogance, King Neptune and Jinbe exchanged a helpless, bitter smile.
This young man's strength was monstrous, and he played by no one's rules. He didn't care about the Marines, and even the Four Emperors who ruled the New World were nothing more than acceptable targets to him.
"Neptune, Jinbe."
Ace turned to face the two highest rulers of Fishman Island.
"The cancer in the Fishman District has been cut out. What about you two?"
"Us?" King Neptune blinked.
"Right now, Fishman Island flies Whitebeard's flag. But Whitebeard is getting old."
Ace folded his arms, his gaze a blade.
"This era is about to crumble. Have you considered swapping the flag over Ryugu Palace for the Eclipse Pirates'?"
The Ryugu Palace guards all sucked in a cold breath.
Jinbe's expression turned deeply serious. He bowed respectfully.
"Captain Ace, your offer honors us. But Whitebeard, our father, has shown Fishman Island a debt of gratitude we can never repay. I, Jinbe, cannot commit such a betrayal. As long as the old man lives, the flag of this island will not change."
"Indeed, Lord Ace." King Neptune nodded gravely. "Lord Whitebeard's kindness is beyond measure. Ryugu Palace cannot accept your invitation at this time."
"I expected as much."
Ace showed no anger. If anything, a look of genuine admiration crossed his face.
"Loyalty is a virtue. If you haven't made up your minds, I won't force it. But my promise still stands. If the day ever comes when you change your minds, you know how to reach me."
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